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Sunday, January 10, 2010

Accoutrements: The Perfect Red Lip

I discovered this video from MAC on creating the perfect red lip, and I just had to share it. I love a red lip, and I swear by MAC Russian Red. But my application technique is pretty rudimentary - it involves slapping it on and hopefully remembering to blot. (One of the many reasons that Jeff calls me a wannabe old lady is that I frequently have lipstick all over my teeth - his other proof that I'm old at heart is my penchant for huge costume jewelry, baby powder-scented items, and an unremitting love for gaudy tapestry furniture.) If you want to elevate your lipstick application game, this is the video for you.If you want to see the version with all the products listed, click here, dears! But beware the "add this product to cart" feature . . . the whole look (lips alone) will cost you well over two hundred smackers. Yikes!

15 comments:

I had no idea "perfect" lips would require 9 (nine!) steps or so many products. I'll be sticking with my one-product, less-than-perfect, "swipe and go" technique, even though the results are reliably less than glamorous.

She Says, I've never tried Lady Danger, but I'm going to have to now . . . thanks for the tip!

Venus, I hear ya. This is definitely more of a special occasion look, I guess. But I found using just *some* of the tips helpful. I don't have the time, patience, or array of makeup brushes for the entire she-bang . . . at least not yet!

The shorter version of this is what I make. Which is: apply normal moisturizer, then apply foundation to lips while I do it to the rest of the face. Then fill in with lip pencil, then use a brush to apply lip color, blot. It doesn't take all that long, and like with all makeup the more you do it, the easier and quicker it becomes. Now if only bold red would suit me!

One more tip from a fellow sewer and former makeup artist. With a red lip it is a great idea to blot again once the red is on. Then reapply the red lipstick and blot again, reapply and you're good to go. This will saturate the pores in the lips and make the colour last longer. Also that last step that is shown here in the video with the foundation, if you use a larger foundation brush you should be able to gently fan on a little light concealer, one shade lighter than your foundation just around the edges and this will highlight your lip shape and give you that really clean plump look you're looking for!

This is the red lip tutorial that I use and love. The video is WAY different from the one you posted, but she's one of my favorites on youtube. She's good about giving you affordable options so that you can rock the ruby pucker without breaking the piggy

I won't go through the 9 steps, but I did try some of them yesterday, and this made a huge improvement in my lipstick. Thanks for the tip.And your coat is fabulous, you deserve to like it and be proud of that!

i actually like the idea of this whole ritual behind a pair of red lips.i think the most important steps are conditioning (if your lips are dry or flakey, red lipstick will only enhance the flakeyness)i don't think i've ever done the concealear step, but it's a great idea to use concealer at the end as an "eraser". and the primer is pretty much fundamental -at least in my case-. it makes the red stay "within" the lips. if i don't use it i'll be all paranoid and asking people if my lipstick has smudge. i actually cheat and use my eyeshadow primer for this purpose and it does wonders.well, who knew one can rant for so long about red lipstick!anyway, i love your blog and your style is very inspiring. thanks for sharing all these tips!